Top 10 Things The INTERNET Will REPLACE

Without the Internet, you and I wouldn’t be able to meet like this. We’d be without this great expanse of knowledge and communications; but what about the things we’ve lost since the dawn of the digital age? Things like encyclopedias, or big books of knowledge, for you millenials! In this archive, we’re going to look at things that the Internet will likely replace over time.

Privacy

This is a battle that’s been fought ever since the dawning of our new age of media, and it’s not one that will die out anytime soon. In fact, chances are things are going to get a lot worse before they show any signs of improvement. We’re not even talking about government conspiracy phone tapping. There was once a time when personal information wasn’t so readily available, but with every new wave of applications and social media, more and more of “you” is put out there, ripe for the picking by any number of ID thefts. Even today, the right to privacy is one that’s on its way out and we can’t help but want to point the finger to our good friend, the Internet. Alot of these privacy issues are actually self inflicted, when people just simply put too much of their life out there. For example, Facebook allows you to find people by searching their phone number. We've all heard stories of people getting fired for lying about why they didn't show up for work, but managed to have the time to take a selfie with all of their friends at the local pub. Now you want to talk about conspiracy theories? Well, let's take that one to the comment section.

Doctor’s Visits

WebMD is all the craze when it comes to self-diagnosing, but there is something else out there that may completely eradicate the need for doctor’s visits when you’re unsure of what you have. Apps like First Opinion and UrgentCare give you the opportunity to get in touch with a doctor via text to try to get a bead on what your symptoms may mean. For the person that’s simply too busy to be sick, First Opinion gives the opportunity to know if it’s something that can be slept off or if immediate action needs to be taken. UrgentCare ups the ante by connecting you with doctors that can actually write prescriptions. Goodbye awkward waiting rooms!

Gridlock and Traffic

Do you love sitting in traffic? We didn’t think so, and so we thought you’d love to know that the Internet may hold the solution to gridlock. In some parts of the world, 30% of traffic on non-highway roads can be attributed to driver’s looking for the best place to park. Well, there is a solution at hand. In Barcelona, an app is being used that relays information on empty spots in the Born Market, allowing driver’s to simply pull up without having to do the slow-crawl scout for a spot. Traffic on busier roads is being tackled by implementing paid-for lanes that utilize sensors in the asphalt to register the vehicle’s license plate and charge the driver, allowing drivers the chance to bypass traffic at a cost.

Manufacturers

It’s tough to ignore how awesome 3D printers are, but it’s also tough to ignore how detrimental they could be to companies that deal solely in plastics. LEGO, we are looking right at you. With people able to create 3D, solid product in the comfort of their own home, who would need massive plants to churn out those foot-destroying blocks? Factor in the wonders of the Internet and consider how new designs could be shared at the blink of an eye and suddenly, we may not have much need for some large scale manufacturers, effecting far more than the imagination can predict, LEGO just being an easy example.

Delivery Drivers

With the change in how we do our shopping, it was feasible to think that delivery drivers would always be safe from the side-effects of the internet. Sorry, Mr. Tiny Brown Shorts, you’re not out of the frying pan just yet. Amazon is the first, and definitely won’t be the last, online store that is looking to implement drones that will drop off packages. While it would certainly be a long while before drone-deliveries became common practice at Amazon, it’s likely that if one company can find success with it, others will follow suit. You may even see delivery companies like UPS and FedEx jumping on the band wagon, replacing hard working drivers with dog-scaring, package-leaving drones.

Side-by-Side Gaming

Remember the days of sitting side-by-side with your best bud as you took down the big baddy of whatever game was popular? It’s probably been an old memory, considering split-screen gaming has been on a drastic decline since Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network came onto the scene. You’ll still find the occasional side-by-side experience in games like “Super Smash Bros” and other fighting titles, but that may be the extent of it all. We’ve entered an age of “online only,” and it’s only a matter of time where even party or single player games are diluted to an online environment.

In-Store Shopping

Black Friday be damned, the Internet is taking over. Coined in the 1960s, Black Friday has been an after-holiday treat for shoppers; but all of that changed in 2005 with the coining of the phrase “Cyber Monday” by the National Retail Federation’s own Ellen Davis. It’s a secret to no one that the convenience of the Internet has boasted online shopping, so much so that the Monday after Thanksgiving has become a pseudo-holiday all its own, pulling in sales figures of up to $2.6 billion. It’s events like these that show just how popular online shopping has become and how much of us dread… you know… putting on pants to buy a television. But all joking a side, we don't blame you. If you've watched our "Top 10 Worst Black Friday Disasters", you'd want to shop on Cyber monday too. While you're at it, sign up for Amazon Prime and get free 2-day shipping on millions of products, by clicking our referral link in the description section, and help our channel out at the same time.

Publishing Companies

Self-publishing is like a plague. Every person that can put words to paper has suddenly become an author, utilizing Amazon’s easy-to-use self-publishing outlet, Kindle Direct. We will come to a point where books are all self-published and the companies that once thrived off of paper media and Oprah’s Book Club will be left watching as countless Fifty Shades of Grey spinoffs and reboots flood the market. Really, though, the process to be published is a drawn out one, and in a society of instant gratification, how long will it be until we can’t be bothered with manuscripts and response times?

Personal Assistants

Unless you need somebody hovering around you waiting for you to need coffee, personal assistants are becoming more and more dispensable. Mobile applications, calendared reminders and even mobile communication are leading to a world of self-sufficiency. Sure, there will be the occasional technophobe that is terrified to talk to Siri or the overly rich person that would rather be spoon fed everything; but as a general rule, it’s probably best to not go to school for a PHD in personal assistance.

Television Stations

The Game Theorists move over, Top10Archive has a prediction of our own that may blow your mind. It may come to no surprise, but TV viewing habits have been on a drastic decline with kids and teenagers in recent years thanks to this awesome thing called YouTube and better technology. Take a look at what's going on right now. Between YouTube, Amazon Prime, Netflix and Hulu, what's the point of having DirectTV or Dish Network? The only major thing these cable companies hold over the internet is live sporting events - which the internet has, just not as good of quality. Let's look at the numbers for the last few South Park episodes.. you see that episode with over 2 million views, titled "#REHASH"? That's the episode Pewdiepie was in, now look at the view counts of all of the episodes around it. Is that just an odd coincidence? Matthew Santoro will be in the last Resident Evil movie, Vitaly and RomanAtwood are in the movie Natural Born Pranksters, Smosh did Smosh: The Movie, which starred other YouTubers; TV shows like Tosh.O and Ridiculousness, whose themes are based on viral internet videos where they also bring YouTubers on set, then the Streamy Awards that specifically target online media, which was broadcasted on VH1. [deep breath] Ok, now let's take a look at all of these YouTube channels; Conan O'Brien has Team Coco, then there is Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Comedy Central, Steve-O from Jackass, the list goes on and on, and it's AWESOME! All of a sudden, these people we see on TV are on the same level as Jenna Marbles, Michael Stevens or Hank Green. Thanks to the power in numbers, you, the viewers, were able to help create these channels you enjoy today. The hundreds of thousands of people that are supporting their families, following their dreams by making YouTube videos, is all thanks to Google's simple use of ads, and you, the viewer.. and that, is something truly special. But, that's just our theory.